Tis the season all gardeners wait for, enduring the bitter winds and frigid snow banks winter brings, the arrival of the seed catalogs. We gardeners live for the dream of lush green gardens with the ripe plump fruit and vegetables at the end of the growing season. With papers scattered about the kitchen table with lists of seeds needed, gardening plots and new landscaping ideas there comes a time when we must roll up our sleeves and get to work. Most gardeners start some of our seeds early that way we can get ahead start on our growing season when we transplant our precious plants out to the garden.
So with our garden plan firmly in hand, begins the hunt for the perfect seeds we need. The seed catalogs that were mentioned earlier pretty much can fulfill any want or need a gardener can have. So with careful climate maps the counting of the last frost date begins. That way you will know when you can start the seeds. Of course that date will be different for each different climate but different for each gardener as well depending on when grandma started the potatoes or other family traditions that you carry from your family.
Folding Tray Table
Well such a time has come for me; I have started my tomato seeds. Now, I am a lazy gardener and use some time saving tools. I love little peat pellets when I first start the seeds. Put the little dome over the plastic bottom and an inexpensive greenhouse atmosphere is created for your plants. It is import during this time to have a light on your plants during this time and the closer the light the less leggy your seedling becomes. The problem I run into quickly is that the seedlings soon become too tall for me to be able to keep the lid on; this creates a detriment to the other seed pods that are still incubating.
So this is where an old trick I know comes in handy. I mentioned earlier that I am a lazy gardener and so I like to do things that don't require to much work from me when it comes to planting the garden. So this little trick of mine comes in handy for that plus it is a friendly to the environment solution, which is always a plus! What I'm talking about is moving your larger seedlings to a paper pot, one that you can plant in the garden without removing or storing after using.
Item needed to make pots is paper. Newspaper is the best but I have used scrap computer paper as well. Tear the paper into appropriate sizes, for the plants that I am just moving out of the seedling tray I use an 8X11 piece. Fold this in half long ways make the bottom of your pot the folded side of paper. At the top of the paper fold that down about 1/2 to 1 inch. Remember, no measurements need to be exact when making these pots. The top fold will be a collar and give some solid structure to the pot. Now you will wrap the paper in a circle; there are two ways to do this.
A small cylinder about 2-3 inches in diameter is needed and you can wrap the paper around that or use 2 fingers inside the pot and wrap loosely around making a cylinder with the paper. Now, if you would like you can tuck the end of the paper inside and secure it that way. I use a piece of tape to secure the pot. After it is secure you will need to fold your ends up inside of the pot then push them down on top of themselves. Viola, your pot is made. Put your seedling in it and fill it full of dirt. You will need to keep a careful eye on the moisture for the seedlings. I give them a major soaking when I put them in the pots and then try to just keep the planting soil damp.